Schumer Remarks On The Need For Republicans To Avoid A Trump Shutdown

December 18, 2018

Washington, D.C. –U.S. Senator Chuck
Schumer today delivered the following remarks at a press conference regarding
the need for Republicans to avoid a Trump shutdown:

“Now earlier today,
I met with Leader McConnell and top Senate appropriators. Leader McConnell
proposed the bipartisan Senate DHS bill, which has $1.6 billion for border
security, plus a $1 billion dollar slush fund for the president to use for his
radical immigration agenda.

“After the meeting,
I spoke to Leader Pelosi and I called Leader McConnell and told him we would
not accept their $1 billion dollar slush fund and that our offers to fund the
government remain.

“Let me be clear:
the Republican offer today would not pass either chamber. We Democrats have
made two reasonable offers that could earn overwhelming bipartisan support in
both the House and Senate: One, pass the six bipartisan appropriations bills
and a one-year CR for the Homeland Security bill. Or, alternatively, a one-year
CR for the remaining seven appropriations bills.

“The president last
week said he would be ‘proud’ to shut down the government. We Democrats don’t
want to shut down the government. And, as for the idea of what Sarah Huckabee
Sanders, they could get wall money from NAFTA or some other part of the
government, they need congressional approval – they’re not getting it for the
wall. Plain and simple. Now, where are we? The ball remains in the president’s
—and the Republicans’—court to accept one of our commonsense proposals.”